Weekly gratitude post #21.
I spent this week completely immersed in my figure skating world (I mean, more than usual) due to the Europeans. I think I'm going to miss running home from the ice rink and gym to be able to catch as much of it live as possible. :)
The only bad thing about this week was that my first trip of 2016 has been cancelled. We'd been planning to go to Vienna as there was supposed to be the first Art on Ice event in Vienna ever. We thought we'd use this opportunity since Vienna is really close to where we live and go there since we adored last year's show in Lausanne. It was supposed to be held on 20 February, less than a week before my birthday. I've had the tickets since autumn and I honestly couldn't wait. On Tuesday, however, they posted on the website that the show has been postponed due to a "scheduling conflict" and it will now take place on 18 December. December. I can't even properly express how disappointed and furious I was... and still am. First of all, it's unprofessional and unfair - to the skaters, artists and to all of us as well. Second of all, I can't go in December as I've already got plans. And even though I've asked repeatedly for an explanation, I haven't been given one. From what I could understand from the comments, it might be because of an unexpected hockey game. I don't think the reason could have been any more stupid. They've been planning this for over half a year and they can't shift a stupid hockey game because of it? Why does it always have to be figure skating that's pushed to the side?
I'm just so disappointed. It was supposed to be my birthday trip, my birthday present and I'd been looking forward to it for months. Oh well. I've got another figure skating-related trip planned for April and I'm definitely doing the Vienna weekend some time when the weather's nicer.
Despite that, there's a lot to be grateful for, right? So here's my list for this week:
1. I'm grateful for my good health. I've been thinking all week how lucky I am to be able to skate and exercise the way I do.
2. I'm grateful for my understanding family who made arrangements for me to be able to watch the Europeans. And for watching it with me, because it is even more fun when you can then discuss it with other people. :)
3. I'm grateful for having learned to say "yes" more often. It's made my life busier than ever but I've got so many more experiences and opportunities because of it, it's absolutely worth it.
Now for the Europeans. I'll start with what I thought was, this time around, the absolute best: ice dance. There are so many beautiful dances this season, I'm so thrilled!
My favourite probably has to be Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte's free dance. It is so joyful, energetic and vibrant, it completely draws you in and you can absolutely see how much they love skating and this dance, and that's something that I absolutely adore. (short dance | free dance)
I of course loved Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron as well. I'd been nervous how they'd do after such a terrific season last year and also because of Gabriella's serious injuries last fall but they were fabulous, especially their free dance. Their programmes are very different from Cappellini/Lanotte's. Out of this world might be a good way to describe them. (short dance | free dance)
Ekaterina Bobrova/Dimitri Soloviev have been my favourite Russian dance pair for some time now (unpopular opinion, I know) and they really shine this season. I fell for their short dance the first time I watched it. Their music is the Masquerade Waltz and the second half is Montagues & Capultes. Beautiful, strong, catchy music combined with their powerful skating - gorgeous, really. (short dance | free dance)
Pairs: Volosozhar/Trankov skated circles around everybody else, of course. Their victory was well-deserved. They're always so beautiful to look at! This was the first time I saw Savchenko/Massot and they were fantastic. Their triple twist is fantastic and they're going to make the future competitions very interesting. I have love Marchei/Hotarek since the first time I saw them together at last year's Euros and they did not disappoint this year, either. They're the same type of skaters like Cappellini/Lanotte: you can see how much they love what they do.
Women: I liked both Medvedeva and Radionova. My problem with the Russian girls, though, is just that: they're girls. And once they actually go through puberty, they immediately get replaced by younger girls. And while they're all terrific technically, I do prefer the way older women can express themselves and the music (think Carolina Kostner.) We'll see what will happen to these two in the next few years. I was very pleasantly surprised by Angelina Kuchvalska and I rather liked Roberta Rodeghiero, too.
Men: Javier Fernandez was superb, as per usual. I really like his skating and I love how much he keeps improving every season. Obviously, Florent Amodio was one of the highlights. I loved that he went back to his Memories of Sobral free skate, it was a great choice to skate this programme as his farewell, and oh my god it worked. He loved performing it and the audience loved him for it. Such an emotional moment! I don't even know what to say about Michal Brezina. I hope they manage to address his psychological issues and give him all the help he needs because he's obviously capable and he works hard. It's his head that fails him. I felt so sorry for him after his skate.
If you watched the Europeans, what did you think? Who were your favourites and how did they do?
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